Schools

Freehold Borough Schools Receive $52K in Fruit and Vegetable Grants

District awarded USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program grant for third year in a row.

The Freehold Borough School District received a $52,756 Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program from the United States Department of Agriculture for the 2011-2012 school year. The program provides students with fresh fruits and vegetables during the school day.

The Freehold Learning Center, which received $26,327, and Park Avenue Elementary School, which received $26,429, are among 143 New Jersey schools that will participate in the program in 2011-2012. The district also received grants from the program in 2009-2010 for the Freehold Learning Center and 2010-2011 for Park Avenue Elementary.

“Two of our schools are receiving the grant next year, which is unprecedented for us,” Business Administrator Patrick DeGeorge said. “Our food services program has come to serve as a model for other districts.”

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According to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture, the program’s goal is to expose school children to healthy foods and increase their fruit and vegetable consumption with the hope of improved lifelong dietary habits.

“This has been a very successful program – the students love the fresh fruits and vegetables and many schools are sourcing the produce from our local farmers,” New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas H. Secretary Fisher said.  “We hope this program will continue to grow to give more children the opportunity to increase their consumption of fresh produce and gain the many health benefits of eating these foods.”

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Other Monmouth County schools receiving grant funding this year include Amerigo Anastsia Elementary School, Audrey W. Clark School, Lenna W. Conrow School, Morris Avenue School and West End School of Long Branch and Midtown Community Elementary School of Neptune.

According to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture, the criteria used in making the selections included: schools that planned to purchase locally grown fruits and vegetables as much as possible; the program would be well-publicized and all students would have access to the produce offered; elementary schools with 50 percent or more of their students eligible for free or reduced price meals; and schools that planned to partner with outside organizations to enhance nutrition education.


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